Photo: AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson

After spending years in testing for various sports leagues, OneCourt’s accessibility aid is finally ready for the big game. The tactile device is making its Super Bowl this year after a successful test run with the 2025 NFL season, where it was used to track 15 games. Designed to assist blind and low-vision sports fans follow the game, OneCourt’s solution is a haptic display that allows users to “feel” the location of the ball, the players, and if a team successfully scores.

The whole process happens in real-time, with sensors reacting to what’s happening on the field with minimal latency. This is accomplished via the NFL’s Next Gen Stats system, where the the football and each player’s jersey is embedded with a microchip, which relays location data via Genius Sports. This information is tracked by OneCourt’s technology, allowing users to track the action live.

Executive Director of the American Council of the Blind, Scott Thornhill, shared his excitement at being able to use the new technology to follow this year’s Super Bowl with the Associated Press. “It will allow me to engage and enjoy the game as close as possible as people who can see,” commented Thornhill.

The following was originally published Nov 11. 2024:

Sports lovers come from all different backgrounds, in all different shapes and sizes, but following a live game can be difficult for those living with a vision impairment. Seattle-based startup OneCourt is changing that, however, with a patent-pending haptic display that lets low-vision individuals feel the game through their fingertips. The company was awarded an AI for Accessibility grant from Microsoft, and had its device featured in a pilot program by the NBA’s Portland Trail Blazers for the ’23-’24 season. OneCourt announced that it devices will once again be available for the Trail Blazers’ current season, making them the first professional sports team to provide the OneCourt haptic display at every home game.

The device, which looks like the field or court of the sport being played, provides haptic feedback to users that allows them to follow both the players and the ball in real-time, while also alerting when a shot is attempted, and if it is successful. In the video above, creator Anthony S. Ferraro breaks down the OneCourt’s features, and how it aids in the enjoyment of live sports for vision-impaired individuals like himself. The OneCourt has been designed and tested for basketball, baseball, and football applications, while the company states that are planning on expanding to other sports in the future.

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